


AN UNBROKEN ROCK

by thoughtsdemise



Category: The Transformers (IDW Generation One)
Genre: Comfort, Hurt, M/M, Major character near death, Mech/Mech, Self-Blame, Warped Reality (AU), finding strength for a loved one
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-24
Updated: 2016-05-24
Packaged: 2018-06-10 09:30:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,160
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6950734
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thoughtsdemise/pseuds/thoughtsdemise
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rodimus steps up to the plate.</p>
            </blockquote>





	AN UNBROKEN ROCK

Rodimus curls in on himself.  His arms tighten about his knees.  His optics shutter, and his audios shut down.  He tries to close the world out completely.  “If I don’t hear those words then they can’t be true,” Rodimus clings to this last hope as his personal commlink beeps again calling him to the medbay.  He makes a small sound and presses his into his knees.  “If I don’t hear those words then they can’t be true,” his vents hiccup and whine with his stress.

_ It had been a rooky mistake.  Rodimus, against Megatron and Magnus’ wishes, had jumped at the chance to stretch his wheels and warm up his blasters.  He had taken the Rodpod down to the surface of an organic planet with the usual group of fighter mechs.  The reward but really the acclaim to capture those bandits had been too much of a draw for the young captain to pass over.  And according to his sources, Rodimus had surmised that the bulk of the enemy would be out from their den.  He had not expected for there to be two hundred plus organics dug into a mountain side.  He had not expected them to be as armed as they were.  He had not expected for Ultra Magnus to be right behind him in a ship then to encompass him in a protective embrace.  An embrace that had put Magnus’ back to the enemy and allowed a well-aimed shot to shatter the full frame armor and cut directly to the big mech’s spark, beginning a fatal collapse. _

“You need to stop acting like a sparkling and get down to medbay now, Rodimus,” Ratchet’s voice is hard and jarring to the younger mech.  Rodimus stares at his CMO with large optics.  “Your lover needs you to be strong for him right now.”  Ratchet grabs the captain and drags him to the medbay.  Rodimus puts up no protest.

+++

The young mech stares blankly at the shattered remains of the Ultra Magnus armor.  He holds himself stiff to chase away any shaking that might tremble over his frame.  He turns optics to Ratchet when he realized that the older mech was speaking to him.

“We were able to stop the collapse.”  Ratchet leads Rodimus to a different medical berth.  His red digits touch Minimus Ambus carefully.  “Once we pulled Minimus out of the armor, we were able to stop the deterioration by also pulling him out of his outer Minimus armor.”  Ratchet lifts up the very small hand.

Rodimus stares at the small mech on the berth.  He was hooked up to several machines to maintain his various readings.  Rodimus’ spark twists painfully in his chest.  His rock was shattered.  He couldn’t…

“What the frag was that for?!”  Rodimus rubs the back of his helm and glares at the medic.

“You weren’t listening.  For once, Rodimus, listen.  Magnus is going to live.”

Rodimus is quiet for a moment and shadows his optics with a downward tilt of his helm.  “That isn’t Magnus.”  He brings up pain-filled optics to stare at the small frame on the berth.

“No it isn’t.  And his spark is no longer able to bear the heavy load it was once forged to do.”  Ratchet vents a deep sigh.  “Scrap, I’m no good at this stuff.  His not Ultra Magnus, Rodimus, nor will he ever be Ultra Magnus again.  But in here,” Ratchet taps his chest over his spark, “he’s still Magnus.  Still the spark you fell in love with.”  Ratchet quirks a smile.  “Even if you two slaggers never wanted to admit.  I swear it’s like an episode of ‘As the Kitchen Sinks’.”  Ratchet grins at a fond memory.  He claps Rodimus on the shoulder.  “He’s going to need you to be his rock now, Roddy.  Especially when he wakes and realizes what he has lost.”

Rodimus winces at the denting press of those red digits.  “I would never leave-“

“Not saying you would.  But I know you, kiddo.  You are like a sea.  Changing and moving but with no real weight behind yourself.  Magnus…no Minimus was the rock on which you built yourself.  Now you must stand and be his rock.”

Rodimus nods and reaches for the now smaller mech.  He carefully takes a hand like it was delicate enough to break under the lightest of touches.  “I can only try.”

+++

Rodimus starts awake at his desk.  The data pads about him disrupted with his jerking arms.  He scrubs at his optics before stretching his spinal strut in a long crack.  He flops back in his chair with a silly grin.  “Dude, Mini, how did you find the energy to do all this paper work and still frag me senseless daily?”  Rodimus laughs at the irritated snort from the couch he had installed in his office six months ago.

The speedster tilts his chair back so that he can grin wanly at Minimus who had nested himself on the couch in a pile of blanket’s and data pads.  Honestly, those data pads should have been on Rodimus’ desk because they were his paper work.  Roddy tilts backward just a bit more to admire the way the light shines off Minimus’ new matte finish.  His thoughts become preoccupied up until the point his helm impacts with the ground, his chair giving under him.  Rubs his helm and turns to give Minimus a dirty look when he hears a snorting chuckle.

“What have I told you about rocking in your chair, Rodimus?”  Minimus picks up another datapad and inspects its contents.  No matter how small he had gotten Minimus had lost none of his regal bearing.

Rodimus rights himself with a flip and picks up the chair.  Getting back to work because he’d be shagged to the pits and back before he let Minimus win their little bet.  He was going to get those energon goodies the smaller mech had hidden in their quarters.  As the former captain now second in command jumps into his paperwork, he pauses to peak at Minimus from the corner of an optic with a warm smile.

It had been touch and go with the small mech from the time he was brought back online to the time he adhered to Rodimus’ wishes to be allowed to be taken care of.   _ A five month back and forth battle, _ Rodimus muses as he watches Minimus work close to his old pace.   _ Bugger still won’t back down and let me do his work. _  Rodimus smiles and returns his attention back to his work.  His smile is large and warm as his spark sings.  The rock may have lost a few pieces and heft, but he was still the unbroken rock.

“If a bit softer and easier to tickle,” Rodimus whispers.

“What was that?  Admitting defeat already, Rodimus?  And here I thought you were way too pig headed for that.”

“Never!!”

Minimus grins at the younger mech and nods.  “Now that’s more like it.”


End file.
